


A Death Sentence

by sakvnosuke



Category: Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Angst, Fluff, Grief/Mourning, Ironhusbands, M/M, Not Avengers: Endgame (Movie) Compliant, but heavy on angst, but i guess there's some fluff so, heavy themes of death, i'm taking stuffs i need and you may not like it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-14
Updated: 2020-03-14
Packaged: 2021-03-01 01:53:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,661
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23137237
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sakvnosuke/pseuds/sakvnosuke
Summary: On the ground, a red and gold iron suit crouched in front of the shining gauntlet. Even from this distance, Jim could see the gears whirring on the metal man’s head.In the end, he should've known they were falling head over heels for something that couldn't be real.
Relationships: James "Rhodey" Rhodes/Tony Stark
Comments: 9
Kudos: 21





	A Death Sentence

**Author's Note:**

> after a whole lot time spent on listening to [orla gartland's cover of "strangers" by sigrid](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qztizJgUciw), this one was born.

The sky was dark over the barren wasteland. Screams filled the landscape, enemies and friends blending together in a fight to keep the future.

Jim swerved around the nasty looking aliens surrounding him, the battlefield echoed around him. Something almost crashed him from his left, if not for the blue iron suit swooping in and blasting it to kingdom come.

When he turned to thank Pepper for saving his ass, she already flew away and he was met with a view that chilled him down to his bones instead.

On the ground, a red and gold iron suit crouched in front of the shining gauntlet. Even from this distance, Jim could see the gears whirring on the metal man’s head.

A death sentence, if he had ever seen one.

Jim yelled a loud, “No!” to no one as another wave of aliens surround him, and the man below him plunged to the gauntlet.

* * *

Jim rubbed his eyes, looking out the apartment window. The sky was bright and light snow was falling down to the tips of the city’s skyscrapers, and his room was all warm and comfy. He almost didn’t want to go out of bed, but it was one of his very rare day off. He wouldn’t dare to waste it. Also, he couldn’t find the presence of someone else beside him in bed.

The moment he stepped out from his bedroom, a pleasant smell of food greeted him. He took a deep breath, relishing not only the smell of cooking, but also just the feeling of being _home_.

Probably one of the best feelings ever.

“Tones?”

He walked to the kitchen when no one answered him, and gave out a huge smile when he found the man responsible for the amazing smell that was wafting around the household.

“May I kiss the chef this fine morning?” He teased, and almost immediately Tony whirled around with an identical huge smile on his face. He was wearing a bright pink apron with “KISS THIS CHEF’S A$$” written on it with block letters.

“Well, good morning to you, too. But we’ll do the kissing after the breakfast. And shower, maybe.”

Jim laughed, moving forward to hug Tony and kiss his lips chastely anyway. “I think we can make do about that.”

Tony faked a gasp against his face. “Scandalous, Mr. President.”

“Says the First Husband wearing that apron.”

Tony scoffed at that. “I am the chef in the house! Do you wanna eat this amazing breakfast or not? Because I can’t cook when you’re putting me in restraints.”

Jim huffed, smile still on his face, and released Tony then, opting to seat on the kitchen counter instead. “Alright, alright. What are you cooking again?”

As Tony went to a long tangent explaining his cuisine to him, Jim leaned back and breathed in the nice feeling of being home.

Yeah, it was the best feeling ever.

* * *

“Fuck off!” Jim yelled to the aliens, but of course they won’t listen. He shot one that shrieked at him in front of his face. There was too many of them. They swarmed him, and even with the latest update of his suit everything proved to be a little overwhelming.

“Tones!” He yelled to his devices this time, wishing the other man would listen. Please, listen to him this once. “Tony, listen to me! Stop!”

He blasted a series of teeth that was trying to bite his lower body, and that action revealed Tony’s crouching figure, his helmet retracted, colorful lights coursing through his veins. The cursed stones were attached to his gauntlet, while Thanos stood frozen in front of him with his stoneless glove.

The mad titan actually looked scared, for once. And Tony's look of determination didn't shake. And Jim was absolutely terrified.

Jim cried out, did everything he could to just—anything, crash down on the man below him and just—stop him. Stop, stop, stop this. Don’t do this. But the enemies keep coming, they keep coming like he was an exposed cube of sugar and they were the ants in the sick ploy the universe made for him.

Even in the midst of loud battle cries, he heard it as clear as day. His favorite voice in the world, announcing the death sentence. One sentence that would haunt him for the rest of his life.

“And I am Iron Man.”

The sound of his snap was almost deafening. And it was no different than the sound of a falling guillotine.

* * *

The autumn wind was blowing softly when Jim wiped the sweat from his forehead. It was getting a little cold, but he gripped his hammer and pushed through.

“Rhodey? What are you doing?”

Jim looked down to see Tony, staring up at him with mild concern on his eyes. Both his hands are on his hips, and he couldn’t help but think _typical Maria fashion, that thing_. Jim grinned at him.

“Making a small present to greet the child.”

Tony raised an eyebrow at him. “Yeah? You could’ve asked for someone else to do it, you know.”

“You say that as if you haven’t made a pile of presents in your garage at all. Also, where’s the fun in that?”

Tony finally grinned back. Small victories. “Still. You’re kind of too old to be making a tree house, right?”

Jim made a deal to hit the nail harder. He heard Tony snort from below. “Honestly, that’s offensive. You have more wrinkles than me.”

“Hey! Whose fault is that? This is because you do worrisome shit like this!”

Jim just rolled his eyes at that, continuing to do his work. Alright, Mister-Sacrificing-Hero, whatever you say. All he could think about was that he didn’t exactly have much time to finish the tree house. Their wedding anniversary was approaching very quickly and he couldn’t postpone this any longer. Not when on the special day the kids would come and bring their babies.

God. He and Tony have grandchildren. How fucking crazy was that? Little toddlers would run around their humble abode soon and he wanted to give them another playground to have. He smiled to himself upon the thought.

“Rhodey, I’m not climbing up there, you know.” Tony’s voice called again from below.

“Well, no one asked you to come up here. Also, you have back pains, take it easy.”

Tony groaned loudly, and when Jim looked down with his shit-eating grin he found Tony flailing his hands dramatically while mumbling things he couldn’t hear from up above.

“Okay, you know what. Let’s see which gift is everyone’s favorite. Tell you what, you’d get NO votes. The babies love me and my toys. You don’t stand a chance!”

“You’re saying WHAT? I can’t hear you from up here, please stand up higher.”

“Fuck you, James! I’m gonna obliterate your ass soon enough!”

As Tony exaggerated his stomps back to the garage, Jim’s laugh could be heard even if someone was six feet underground.

* * *

The change of headcount on the battlefield was—jarring, to say the least. But Jim couldn’t care less about that. What he cared was that there were no more ugly enemies on his toes. What he cared was the way everything quieted and the sense of everyone holding their breath.

What concerned him the most was the way he could see him clearly now. Him, down there, surrounded by familiar figures, body almost unmoving. Jim’s heart thumped inside his chest, and he briefly wondered if heart diseases were contagious.

If it were—who would he blame for this ache if not the man down there? More importantly—who would he blame if said man’s heart wouldn’t even be able to beat anymore?

God, _please_ , not him.

Alas, the death sentence was already said and done.

He’d seen Tony on his bad days, alright. He’d seen Tony battered and bruised after a huge fight and another occasion of him being a self-sacrificing idiot. But at that moment—that was not like any others. His condition was not like any others. The heartache he was feeling was a new, raw, guttural pain that he couldn’t shake off.

There he was, laying against a piece of rubble (a piece of home, this place used to be part of their home), eyes unfocused and side of his face charred. There he was, his longest best-friend, not responding to Pepper’s soft calls.

There laid the love of Jim’s life, his beloved husband, on the verge of slipping away from him forever.

He landed, tried to do it as softly as possible. The people surrounding him moved to give him space, and he resisted the urge to fly away instead of facing this. Just thinking that this could be his last chance to— it made him—

His whole body shook, but he braced a step forward nonetheless.

* * *

Tony landed, hard. The ground cracked underneath his armor and someone yelled at him to calm down. But his body was shaking inside the armor and his mind was more of a slurry than usual and he felt like his damaged heart was going to give out.

“Where is he, Hill?”

Hill raised her hands. It didn't help to calm him at all. “Just calm down before you have a heart attack.”

Tony gritted his teeth. When he removed the faceplate, the wind that hit his face told him that his cheeks were wet. But he couldn’t care less.

“Where is he?!”

Behind that black curtain, Tony knew he would find one of his worst nightmares, and the last thing he wanted to do was to go in there. But he also knew he wouldn’t believe it if he didn’t see it with his very own eyes.

So he took a deep breath and opened the curtain.

The only furniture inside was two tables. One top scattered with parts of a too familiar grey armor. In pieces, shattered, damaged. The armor made by him, for one of the most important people in his life. And it was broken.

On the other top, a white blanket obscuring a still body.

He turned his face from the white sheet, opting to go to the pieces of armor. He caressed the cheek of the armor head, his shiny new armor a stark contrast against the burned grey metal.

“The power to break this armor would have to be—” His lips trembled, only his armor keeping his hands from shaking. FRIDAY was quiet for once. “How did the impact sensors not counterbalance? It must have been a force—" The scrape of metal against metal, broken heart shattering once more.

The body was completely still, but he felt like it was staring at him. He lost the person under the white blanket, and it was not a dream. Even if he fixed the armor, there would be no one to use it anymore.

_Rhodey. Rhodey. Rhodey. Rhodey._

His eyes were burning. Rage filled his body and he stormed outside, not sparing the room another glance.

* * *

Those five or so steps he took felt like miles worth of journey. A journey to hell, it seemed, as the closer he got the more he felt his whole body ache and his eyes burn. The lover witnessed the death sentence, and was forced to face the aftermath. Everyone else gave him way as if he had the plague, or like he was a celebrity and they were rolling open the red carpet. He couldn't decide. But he hated it all the same.

Then Jim crouched, and those unfocused eyes snapped to meet his. They blinked sluggishly, and Jim had to bit his lips to keep himself from sobbing there and then.

“Honeybear.” If he wasn’t completely broken before, that small whisper definitely turned his insides to shatters of glass.

“Hey.” He whispered, equally quiet. His hand found Tony’s, metal clenching metal. Tony’s eyes drifted away from him in one scary moment, and it sent him to a panicked state. “Hey, hey, stay with me. Look at me. Please.”

Tony took approximately forever and an enormous amount of struggle to stare back to Jim’s eyes. He took another pile of strength to flash him a shaky smile.

“Jim, tell the kids—”

“You tell them yourself.” Jim cut his words, the hold of his hand getting tighter. His other hand settled on top of his arc reactor (because God forbid he touch those _burned skin_ —) and the hum of it didn’t feel comforting at all at that time.

Tony huffed a breath and attempted another smile, his lips trembling and eyes brimming with tears. _You know I can’t_ —passed between them, left unsaid.

Many people, very few sounds. The funeral was quiet, quiet, it was too quiet. The world was holding their breath. Jim’s tears, on the other hand, couldn’t be held back anymore.

“Were you happy?”

As soon as that rolled off his tongue, he knew it was the wrong thing to say. How very dumb and insensitive of him to ask that. Tony Stark was the world’s favorite sucker punch and he was the firsthand witness to it. He should’ve known the answer, he shouldn’t have—

He felt a timid squeeze on his hand, and he was forced to meet Tony’s eyes again. Something inside that gaze softened, and memories of those good years they went through together passed between them—MIT, confession, Iron Man, The Kiss, Avengers, engagement, marriage, the children—and more, many more special moments, all the good things they both treasured, in a slideshow private for them to witness. An album flipping through to the last page, and the last page was them smiling, together. Even if that wasn’t from the current moment.

And Tony Stark was never a liar, not in front of James Rhodes.

“I am.”

So Jim smiled, because Tony said he loved his smile, and because it’s the least he could do, amidst his blurry vision from tears. Let him give the best flower for his beloved’s casket.

“Then it’s enough.” Ache, ache, ache. _Lying through your teeth, Jim,_ Roberta would scold him. But Tony was still listening to him, like he wouldn’t hope for anyone else to listen to at that moment. “It’s okay. We’ll be okay. I’ll take care of everyone.” Bullshit, bullshit, bullshit. _I hope this is not too much to ask, but please take care of him,_ Maria’s words echoed and her smile was almost tangible.

 _Hey, Rhodey, would you stay with me forever?_ One eternity ago, one would laugh at the absurd concept of ‘forever’. How would one stay in contact with a dead man?

The casket was closing, and Tony’s last smile would haunt his dreams and wake forever.

“You can rest now.”

* * *

A soft breeze made the orange leaves on the landscape sway. The sun was shining brightly, but the air didn’t feel hot. The water of the lake was calm, and that day nature gave humans their best quality.

That day, two men stood underneath a tree, making a sacred oath to stay by each other’s side despite time’s unknown shapes. That day, a small family laughed and celebrated the long-awaited ceremony. That day, despite everything that went down in the world, one couple was genuinely happy.

Another day, when nature would agree to give their blessings again, one from the couple would stand underneath the same tree. A new stone would be placed underneath the tree, and the man would break down in front of it. The wind would hug him and the upcoming dark clouds would weep with him.

A eulogy, for the audience of zero to listen to.

But that’s a story for the future to see. Because right then, two men are laughing on the cabin beside the lake—their family an uncomplete jigsaw puzzle, but there nonetheless—celebrating a bright future no one should dare to imagine.

Even when they turn their heads away, the death sentence was looming in the horizon, just waiting to be announced.

**Author's Note:**

> wheee i have so many exams.
> 
> i didn't specify the kids so you can imagine them as whoever you like. also, i envisioned the bits between endgame scenes are like, alternate universes, but i guess you can take it how you like it.
> 
> leave kudos if you liked that, scream at me in the comments, or [here](https://twitter.com/sakvnosuke). thanks for reading!


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